Turn a birdcage into a hanging basket planter with a few simple modifications and the addition of gorgeous plants. Succulents are perfect for a project like this because they are drought tolerant and have so much variety in their shapes, sizes, and growing habits.
Birdcage
Coconut coir hanging basket liner
Cactus and succulent soil
Various succulents
Make it!
First look for a birdcage that opens from the top so that you have easy access to the inside of the cage. Some birdcages that simply have a small door on the front are beautiful and decorative but not functional to turn into a hanging planter.
The base of the planter will be a coconut coir hanging basket liner. These come in many different sizes so look for one that fits the inside of your birdcage. If it is a bit large then you can use scissors to trim it so it creates a solid nest on the inside of the cage.
Once you have your nest of coconut coir, fill it with a layer of cactus and succulent soil, a soil blend specially formulated to ensure that it has the right drainage and properties for growing cacti and succulents.
Now is the time to get creative! Just like any container design, you want to look for plants that will follow the rules of “thriller, filler, and spiller.”
The thrillers are the beautiful Echeveria “Black Prince”* and Aeonium “Pinwheel”* and “Zwartkop”* that pop out of the door and sides of the birdcage. The filler plant is Crassula “Campfire”* that I set inside the basket. The spiller is Sedum spurium “Elizabeth” planted in the bottom of the cage draping down over the sides. This variety will turn a brilliant red when the weather gets colder. I added a few more decorative succulents in the center for additional color: Sedum “Coppertone”* added a bright pop of orange. I also added Sedum “Frosty Morn” and Echeveria “Painted Echeveria”* to fill in the space and hold the roots of the other succulents in place.
*A big thank you to Proven Winners for providing these plants for this project!
To make the planter, start by tucking the draping sedum roots in the soil and pulling the foliage through the cage’s holes. Next, add the filler in the center of the planter and place a bit more soil around it. Plant the decorative thriller succulents through the door and the gaps in the sides of the birdcage. It’s a bit tricky to add them in, but you can use floral pins to hold them in place until they settle in.
When your design is completed, give it a thorough watering to ensure that the roots adapt to their new home. After it is established, wait for the soil to become mostly dry, then water thoroughly by soaking the bottom of the birdcage into a few inches of water and allowing it to sit for one hour to absorb. Remove from the water and let drain for 30 minutes before hanging back up so that it doesn’t become too heavy for the branch it is suspended from.
As with hanging baskets, a birdcage planter will tend to dry out quickly, especially in hot summer months. Luckily, succulents are drought tolerant and can handle a bit of that. For more tips on how to care for succulents please see this post:
The following nest box may be used by any one of the below cavity-nesting birds:
Tree Swallows and Violet-green Swallows - Tree Swallows in particular are not exactly hard to please when it comes to nest boxes. They have even been known to nest in mail boxes. However, the following next box is best suited for them, and also work for any of the below bird species.
Suitable Nestbox Size: ~ 12 inches high x 6.5 inches wide x 7 inches deep. Mount about 5 to 6 feet high on a metal pole. No perches at the entrance holes as they would aid predators.
Floor Dimensions: at least 5" x 5" .
Material to be used: Red Cedar (more durable than other wood material), rough cut boards or exterior-grade plywood at least 1/2" thick. Unpainted. Ventilation openings in the floor and under the roof. Although some experts disagree with the notion that ventilation openings are needed at all. Please refer to this article for further information. This may also depend on location of nest box, exposure to direct sun as well as material used to build the nest box.
Entrance Hole: About 1.5 in diameter to keep the larger birds out, about 7 - 8 inches above the floor.
Roof: Hinged, secured with shutter hooks. Sloped down, overlapping on the sides and the front reduces exposure to rain and makes it more difficult for predators to get to the chicks or eggs.
Hardware: Best to use corrosion resistant, stainless steel and dichromate plated screws
Predator Guard: An inverted metal cone attached below the nextbox will provide some protection against predators.
Position:
On poles situated on open fields with about 100 feet between any other nest boxes. Away from bushes, trees, ditches or fences.
Close to bodies of water, but not too close. About 25 feet away from a body of water is ideal.
About 100 yards away from buildings.
Position nest far enough from roads, paths or trails to minimize disturbance.
Take nest box down after each breeding season, and repair and sanitize before reusing.
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Original article and pictures take www.beautyofbirds.com site
The medium length works great on thick hair. Thick hair can be a gift, but it also can be a big hustle. Your friends may envy you. But they do not know the trouble you have to go through to manage it daily. It takes you an hour to dry your hair. Finding an elastic tough enough to hold it is a major challenge, let alone a hair clip. A medium haircut can be a great solution. Take a look at our hairstyle collection.
This chic hairstyle that works well on thick hair. Embrace your luxurious hair volume and use a texturizer to structure your hair. Creative coloring will add a playful edge to your hairstyle. This hairstyle will look smashing with any type of face shape.
2. Collarbone Length Long Bob or “Lob”
Who said medium hair is only an in-between style as you are straightening your locks out? Becoming to know in the industry as “the Cut” this haircut become more and more popular. The trick is to keep hair length not too short and not too long, just about collarbone length. For the sharp look blow-dry and straighten your hair using a flat iron hair-straightener. But this length is also great for curling and even long enough for an up-do or braids.
♡ Found this interesting? Wait till you see these: ♡
3. Medium Shag
A shag is a medium haircut heavily feathered into different lengths. Created by the barber Paul McGregor this diverse hairstyle have a million variations and can be shaped to suit different face and hair types.
Medium length layered hair for thick hair – cut and color!
Medium Hairstyles for Thick Hair for Round Faces
4. Stacked Bob
Short stacked bog has the right length that allows you to style your hair in slick hairstyle. Your hair would have to be layered to add rounded shape.
5. Layered Medium Hairstyles
Often women with thick hair hesitate to cut it shoulder length worrying it will look like a helmet on their head. The trick is to layer your hair heavily from about ears level. Below are great examples of how thick hair was managed into the shoulder length layered haircuts. Both are stunning and elegant.
Medium Hairstyles for Thick Brown Hair
6. Undercut Hairstyle
Undercut can be great on thick hair! It can be as edgy or as subtle as you like. So give it a try! This is a haircut everyone with thick hair should try at least once in their life.
♡ Found this interesting? Wait till you see these: ♡
7. Medium Bob with Soft Curls for Thick Hair
A timeless look for medium thick hair with soft curls. Transform your classic aspirations with these retro-inspired curls. For a much softer appearance, experiment by using a paddle brush to recreate this simple vintage medium hair soft curls.
Ideal Facial Shapes – square, heart, round, oval
How You can Style It
You can use a rounded brush and then blow dry. With a standard curling iron, wrap the top to bottom parts of your hair, beginning with the upper part of the ear and leaving the crown part smooth and then pin curls into position. Spray your hair with a mild hold hair styling spray.
Consider Kenra Volume Spray, Super Hold Finishing Spray. This gives your hair greatest volume as well as hold, at the same time keeping your hair looking healthy, in addition to glowing. It makes soft curls hairstyle stay longer throughout the day.
8. Well-Defined Medium Bob on Thick Hair
It is often advised that thick hair requires a softer, layered haircut and well-defined bob will not suit is. But there always are exceptions to the rule. Both Katie Holmes and Anna Wintour turned medium length bob into an iconic look that and in their own ways became symbols of impeccable style. Such haircut does require perfect grooming. It was said that Anna Wintour trims her hair daily. This might be too extreme for the most of us. But this hairstyle on thick hair is definitely for those who are ready to take time to style their hair daily.
♡ Found this interesting? Wait till you see these: ♡
9. Natural Curly Medium Hairstyles
There is a mistaken belief that bangs/fringe cannot be used with curly hair. This is not quite right and photos below are a proof. Yes, you have to be very careful and account for the shrinkage on curly hair. But you can get fabulous style with soft bangs/fringe on curly natural hair. You will see that your appearance is instantly revitalized, not to mention a completely different level of sophistication added to your hair.
Styling
Side-swept bangs lighten up the thick hair volume around the face. The length and even layers of the curly hairstyle with bangs help to stimulate natural hair texture to be voluminous as well as have weight.
Original article and pictures take www.circletrest.com site
Best Hairstyles For Shoulder Length Hair – My Top 10
Shoulder length hair is practically the most manageable length of hair for our busy schedules. If you are not fond of a boyish haircut then this is the most suitable length of hair with which you can even style easily.
You can go for layers, curls and bangs with this sleek haircut. Choppy and sleek styles for the whole of hair length are also not a bad option. The best thing is it doesn’t take much time for styling these daily hairstyles for medium length hair or shoulder length hair.
Here are my top 10 hairstyle suggestions for shoulder length hair. Based on your sense of style and the shape of your face, you can decide which one to choose and sport.
1. Front Side Swept Bangs:
You thought only side bangs look good? You can rock with Front bangs. Do some soft and wispy front bangs which you can side sweep for a different show altogether. This is among the latest haircuts for medium hair.
2. Layered Shoulder Length Hairstyle and Curls:
Loose messy curls are a big hit if you are going for curls on a Shoulder length hairstyle.
3. Messy Shoulder Length Hairstyle:
A shoulder length hairstyle can be given a messy and lazy look with the touch of your curler followed by two to three times of repeated combing with a paddle brush and then some touch of blow drying. A medium length hairstyle will not prevent you from achieving this awesome messy look.
4. Feathers and Outward Curls:
This is a sweet look which you can easily achieve with a shoulder length hair cut. It has to be maintained as per the layers or fringes running through the whole length of hair. You can use your paddle brush and your blow dryer to get the feathers at the bangs.
5. Sleek Shoulder Length Hairstyle With Lengthy Side Swept Bangs:
This is a sweet simple look which will hardly require any maintainence.You can achieve this look with a shiny hair serum and a shoulder length cut with long lengthy side swept bangs.
6. Waves and Shoulder Length Hair:
This is an awesome look to sport and you don’t need to rush to the parlour for achieving this celebrity look. You can use your big barrel curler and some paddle brushing to let your curls drop and set into waves all throughout the hair. Use some strong hold spray or shiny spray to help the curls stay in their place.
7. Bangs and Shoulder Length Hair With Tip Curls:
This is almost a no-maintenance hairstyle, though for the medium bangs to stay in shape you need regular trimming. A big barrel curler will also help you achieve the tip curls.
8. Choppy Shoulder Length Hair With Choppy Bangs:
This is a spot on look if you are a fan of choppy hairstyles.
9. Half Way Loose Curls and Front Fringes:
With monthly parlour visits, you can easily maintain the lovely front fringes. A barrel curler can do the rest of the job.
10. Side Parted and Bunch Messy Tips:
This can be a great look for showing off that sweet and cute Barbie doll in you. Tease the lower ends for that bunch look on the tips.
Hope you enjoyed this article. Which one do you plan to sport?
Original article and pictures take cdn2.stylecraze.com site
Celebrities have been killing it on the red carpet with their bobs and lobs. From Taylor Swift’s shaggy look to Emma Stone’s short red hair, there are so many styles worth copying, or at least taking to your hairdresser and saying “I want this cut – or as close as you can get“.
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
Here’s my favorite list of celebrity hairstyles rocking the bob and lob.
A bob hairstyle is typically cut at about jaw level and often has fringe or bangs. Some of the best known bob hairstyles from the 90s include Isabella Rosselini, Winona Ryder, Natalie Portman in The Professional and Uma Thurman in Pulp Fiction.
Here are some of my favorites from recent years.
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
Emma Stone – Whether she has short, long, red or blonde hair – Emma always looks stunning
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
Julianne Hough – the hair envy of thousands of women
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
Keira Knightley looking gorgeous with some soft curls
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
Sarah Hyland always looking cute, especially in this straight bob hairstyle
Best Celebrity Lob Hairstyles
Some of our favorite celebrities have become scissor obsessed lately chopping off their long locks into lobs, a longer version of a bob. It falls somewhere between the chin and the collarbone and is worn curly, straight and often somewhere in between.
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
Jennifer Aniston was the talk of the town when she chopped her long locks
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
Jessica Alba chopped her long locks into a lob and also went with an ombre hair color
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
This is one of my favorite hairstyles on the lovely Gwyneth Paltrow
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
We’ve seen Jennifer Lawrence with everything from a pixie cut to long hair
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
Jennifer Lopez surprised everyone when she chopped her long locks
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
This is a stunning cut and color on Kate Hudson
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
I love everything about the cut and color on Rosie Huntington-Whiteley (plus that lip color is wow!)
Looking for some of the prettiest and best celebrity hairstyles to get some ideas for your summer hair? From long bobs (lobs) and bobs, there are quite a few celebrity hair ideas for everyone. I’m pretty much in love with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s hair and Julianne Hough’s hair too of course. Click through to see all of the looks. I know you’ll fall in love with at least one!
I went to a Taylor Swift concert where she talked about two big moves – to New York and cutting her hair. Both smart I would say!
Which celebrity hairstyle is your favorite? Are you growing your hair out or contemplating chopping it all off? For more hairstyle ideas and inspiration, click on the pictures or links below.
Shiny, bright red strawberries are not only a delicious treat but they are also a decorative plant that looks beautiful in the landscape. Low-growing plants dotted with white or pink flowers and brilliant berries can be used in a variety of small-space gardening solutions. This living strawberry wreath is an art piece that is also a smart use of space. It is easy to put together and it will grow in more fully as the years go by.
Materials
The Best Plants to Use in a Living Strawberry Wreath
Strawberries are categorized into June-bearing and everbearing varieties. June-bearing strawberries will produce a large number of berries over about three weeks in the early summer. Everbearing strawberries will spread the berry production out over many months. For a wreath like this, everbearing plants will give the wreath a longer decorative appeal.
The plants for this project were provided by Monrovia and divided from established plants in my garden. Thank you to both of them for the generosity!
Everbearing Strawberries
Albion Strawberry is high yielding, tolerates heat and humidity, and has excellent disease resistance.
San Andreas Strawberry is similar to Albion and it produces high-quality fruit early in the season, and continues to yield throughout the summer.
Seascape Strawberry is highly productive over a long season; it has large fruit, excellent flavor, and good disease resistance.
Container Strawberries
Larger strawberry plants may overwhelm the small soil space for moisture and the leaves will quickly become unruly. If you are using a smaller wreath form, choose low-growing or container plants, like Fern Strawberry.
Unique Varieties
Choose decorative strawberry plants such as Toscana Strawberry, which has deep fuchsia pink flowers or Pineberries that has white fruit with red polka dots and taste like a cross between a strawberry and a pineapple.
Make it!
Use a wheelbarrow as your planting surface. The wheelbarrow will keep it at a good height for planting, but also allow you to water and tend to the wreath as the plants are adjusting to their new home.
Open the wire wreath and add a container soil mix into the front of the form. Attach the back of the form on and flip the wreath over to begin planting.
Use a soil knife to make the holes large enough to gently tuck the strawberry roots into the holes. Keep the holes small enough, however, that the plants do not fall out. Use florist pins as necessary to hold the plants in place.
When all of the holes have been filled with berry plants, water the wreath well and leave it in a shaded space for a few days. After the plants have recovered from planting, move the wheelbarrow and wreath out to a sunny spot and water well. Keep watering and giving sun to the wreath until the berry plants take hold and start growing new leaves.
Use florist pins to tuck in any disorganized leaves and hold up heavy clusters of berries. Continue pruning, pinning, and watering your wreath throughout the summer months. Don’t worry, this will take all of 5 minutes a week and you can do it while you are harvesting berries.
Caring for a Living Wreath
Plant the wreath with young or bare root plants in the early spring of the first year. As the plants grow, keep the leaves close to the frame using florist pins.
As the season goes on, harvest berries, prune browning leaves, and tuck runners into spaces around the wreath.
Take the wreath down to water it once a week at least. Soak the soil and wreath liner well, and leave it down for an hour before hanging it up for display again.
Strawberry plants will only produce well for about three years. If you continue to add the runners into new holes around the wreath form, this wreath will look beautiful and produce for many years to come.
Overwinter the wreath in a cool, dry spot in the garage or under cover. The following spring, prune back the brown leaves and runners leaving plenty of space for the new growth to appear.
Feed the wreath in the spring with a well-balanced organic fertilizer.
More Strawberry Projects!
Pin it!
Original article and pictures take gardentherapy.ca site
Whether you want to catch the golden rays of the sun or just want to add a little dazzle to your window, a beaded suncatcher is a fun and easy project you can complete in an afternoon.
I have a window in the back of my living room that was a persistent danger to my feathered friends. Birds would fly into that window on a daily basis. Why do birds fly into windows? It’s because they see the reflection of sky or trees in the pane of glass instead of a window. The best way to help the birds from doing this is to disrupt the reflection. There are several ways to do this: you can use stickers, cover the window or draw streaks across the surface with soap. I wanted a prettier solution: a suncatcher!
Get your piece of wood and measure 1 inch increments along its length. I used a piece of bamboo flooring leftover from another DIY project. You can use a dowel rod or even driftwood for this project. I drilled 12 holes along the length of the bamboo.
Use a small drill bit to drill a hole in each of your marked increments. The two holes at each end of the wood will be where the nylon string will be inserted to created a hanger, so these might have to be a little bit larger in order to fit the thicker nylon rope. I drilled 12 holes in all. This means I need 10 strings of beads for my mobile.
Cut a length of rope at least 24 inches long. String the nylon rope through one of the drilled holes on the end. Pull it through and string in through the drilled hole on the opposite end of the piece of wood.
Secure the nylon rope with a double knot on each end.
Cut a length of beading string and thread the beading needle and secure the tail with a knot. My beading string was about 36 inches long. Once it was threaded and knotted it was about 13 inches long. String up a bead on the threaded needle.
Pull the thread through and then bring the beading needle back under the bottom of the base (where the knot is) and back through the bead. This will serve as a stopper for larger beads.
String up a larger bead and place it next to the smaller stopper bead. When you are done adding beads, always end with a smaller bead (the stopper bead) by passing the threaded beading needle back through the base of the smaller bead as explained earlier.
Continue to string beads. I spaced my few inches apart for an open look. You can also stack the beads one after another. Each one of my beaded strings were about 13 inches long. You can make them longer or shorter if you like.
Pass the bead needle (that’s still attached to your completed string of beads) through one of the holes in the piece of wood. Take a small bead and pass the beading needle trough. Bring the beading needle back around and pass it through the bead again. Secure it with a knot and cut the string. Continue making strings of beads and securing them to the piece of wood one string at a time.
Now, hang your beaded suncatcher mobile in a window that gets plenty of sunlight and watch it sparkle! My mobile hangs in the window that the birds were flying into and I am glad to report that the suncatcher is doing its job of breaking up the reflection. It’s pretty and keeping my feathered friends safe.
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Original article and pictures take gardentherapy.ca site
